14 posts tagged “highly recommended”
what is it with the massacring of the english language by Japanese bands? This one's called Veltpunch, whatever that is or means (it doesn't sound like it means anything to me, though I could be wrong). Seems they a resonably well known with a few singles and albums already. I don't know what single of theirs this is, though I do know it was released on May 21, 2007 and was used as the opening to Nabari no Ou.
1: CRAWL
2: BANANA to BUTTERFLY (lol)
CRAWL is an awesome pop-rock song. I'ts upbeat with a dark and rebelious feel. The vocalist has a good voice, the instrumentation is very good- and surprisingly the english in the song makes sense and is pronounced quite perfectly. The two vocalists, the girl and the guy, when they sing together it works well. This is a really good track, and it's quite catchy too.
BANANA to BUTTERFLY has an odd name. It's another soft rock song wich is a bit more downtempo, a little more ballad like than CRAWL. The instrumentation is still really good, especially the guitar part, as are the good vocals. I love how it varies throughout the song, going through like phases almost, segments with different feel and emotions. The guitar really drives the song forward for this one, and Taisuke Endo has a chance to do his "screams" (that's actually what he's listed as doing, as well as drums). The song is pretty powerful with alot of emotion and technically it's brilliant. Ignore the strange title and it's a good song!
Overall Veltpunch have a sound reminscent of the styles of LAST ALLIANCE, pigstar and perhaps ELLEGARDEN. Their music is technically good, as well as being good to listen to. Both songs hold a certain power to them. Furthermore, The two vocalists work well together, and both songs have some very nice guitar solos. This is a good single from an obviously talented band.
Hey! I return after a short break from reviewing. This month (yep, it's already August) there's alot of brilliant new singles coming out! I've already heard Onitsuka's and it sounds beautiful, looking forward to 12012, Despairs Ray, plastic tree and Chemistry life goes on. I prefer to do album reviews these days, apart from 12012 probably where I'll review the single : ) So...I'm still reviewing older stuff. It feels strange calling this album old, as I can still remember waiting for it to come out. I adore the album, there are some crappy tracks but there are some beautiful ones too. The photobooklet is photoshopped, as my family had great fun pointing out, but absolutly stunning and it suits the mood of the album- beautiful, dark, myusterious with splashes of bright diamonds and light. Um..yes. I also got a poster with this album, which became the first Jpop poster on my wall. Took all my courage to put it up and keep it up, but I can still look up and see Ayu every day now <3 On to the review!!
This is Ayu's 8th album released on 2006.11.29.
The album opens with Not yet, a very ethereal and synth based piece blending beautiful electronica with Ayu's vocals. It's a powerful and catchy opening, with lots of power as it starts of quiet building up to a soft trance dance track- Ayu's vocals distorted and blended into the gorgeous electronica. A wonderful and unique song. Reminscent of loveAPPEARS but at the same time, taking a whole new route.
then it's until that day... continuing on in the same light as Not Yet, except alot more gritty and rockier with strong guitar riffs and heavy drum beat besides the electronica, distorted backing vocals which pop up now and then and Ayus sometimes distorted, sometimes wordless vocals. The wordless bits are beautiful, and I adore the chorus too. It's still just as beautiful as Not yet and justpowerful, packed with alot of emotion. It's a strong and more rebelious track, downright angry much like alterna or STEP you.
The fast Startin' is next, continuing with the heavy electronica songs. This one blends electronica, and pop rock for a fast and fun track. I hated this at first but it really grew on me, it's so catchy! By the time you hit the chorus you're kinda hooked. The song is still pretty powerful with Ayu belting it out and the hints of rock with the guitar, much like until that day... but the lyrics talk about believeing in yourself and having confidence. I love the adlibbing at the end
The album delves into gritty rock for 1 LOVE, which is very dark and angry- and who doesn't think of the PV when listening to this? Immediatly images of pole dancing Ayu pop into my mind. The song itself is awesome. Very angry and powerful, with Ayu belting it out with all her emotion and a fantastic soft rock arrangment. It's dark and gritty and makes you think of underground pole dancing clubs. Excellent song. Looking at the lyrics it's actually not as angry as it sounds, more about the importance of love and wanting to be loved.
Then it's the slow and gorgeous It was. I read so many reviews stating how boring this track was, and was surprised. Personally this is one of Ayu's most unique and beautiful ballads. The soft instrumentation filled with synth, breaking into rock in the chorus is very powerful and effective- it adds alot of power and emotion to the song. The distortion of Ayu's voice in the verses, compared to the chorus where the distortion drops and it's just Ayu sounding beautiful and emotional is a wonderful contrast. It's a soft, sad and very beautful song. I adore the contrast presented in it and the way it constantly changes, if only slighlty.
An interlude is next with LABYRINTH, an ehtereal instrumental filled with twinkling sounds and synth which fits in nicely between It Was and Jewel. It's a mood lifter after It was, building up to the romantic and hopeful Jewel whilst still having a darker edge. A beautiful and Bittersweet little instrumental that fits nicely.
Then it's the pretty ballad Jewel. The song opens with pretty piano part, building up as the song progresses but still
momentum is the typical winter ballad, the piano nstrumentation and the synth and everything giving alot more winter vibes than even Jewel. It's like a winter edition of say Fairyland! OK I won't take the piss too much. It's a fairly pretty, very dramatic ballad and Ayu gives a lovely vocal performance. The PV was very nice too. It's not as good as secret or Jewel, but it's still pretty and nice to listen to. The guitar adds something unique and interesting to it.
another interlude, the beatiful Taskinlude which starts with a pretty music box sound then explodes into hard rock- this could make such a good song : ) The interlude itself is beautiful.
Then it's the annoying Born to be...which I tried to love but couldn't. The whole overly dramatic feel to it, the chanting and the whatnot just irritates me not end.
Another annoying one with Beautiful Fighters. This one I have mixed feelings about. On one hand, the distorted vocals of "beautiful fighters" and the whistling and clapping or whatnot is annoying, on the other if you take it for what it is- a cute pop song about girl power I suppose it's alright.
BLUE BIRD is the fairyland of Secret. It's a fun and summery tune, which sounds hyper and happy but actually the lyrics are really sad. The PV is the dancing on the beautiful white sands, all happy happy. It's nice.
Kiss o' kill is an amazing experimental rock track. The song opens with children singing and a piano before introducing Ayu and the organ. The organ, synth and Ayu's forlorn, bitter vocals give the song a dark and nightmarish feel. The lyrics too are beautiful. It's a powerful and emotional track. I was drawn to the title, which in a kiss me kill me way I suppose is Kiss or Kill. Or in engrish manner- kiss of kill? I wonder. Anyway, This has become a personal favourite of mine, for it is quite simply amazing. I adore the instrumentation, and Ayu sounds amazing.Check out her performance of this too.
Secret ends the album off, as a pretty and sorrowful ballad. It's absolutly stunning with wonderful instrumentation, especially the synth and the accoustic guitar part and the strings. Ayu comes in and her voice is soft and filled with so much emotion- continuing to give a wonderful vocal performance the whole way through. I adore the chorus, it's beautiful the way Ayu reaches up the higher notes and the instrumentation with the accoustic guitar, the strings... it's just so heartbreakingly beautiful and so emotional. You can feel the sorrow and regret conveyed in the song. Everything about the song is perfect. A wonderful end to a brilliant album.
I've not listened to the album for a while, but I'm reminded of how much I love it. It's a mature album where Ayu really shows another side of her, like all her albums always present something new- something a fan could hate or love. I love this side of her, I love the powerful rock tracks like Kiss o' kill and It was, the soft rock ballad. I adore the ballads like Secret and Jewel. It's a very powerful album with lots of emotion. The photos for the album, the PVs- the entire package was well thought out and all came together brilliantly. There are some bad tracks on the album, but the number of good tracks really overpowers them. A beautiful album from Ayu and one of my personal favourites.
Kaira is Kaira Gong's first and currently only album released on November 11th 2005. the album was later repackaged and sold in July 2006. Kaira Gong is a singer I only knew of through the song "Cannot Let Go" on the Tokyo Juliet OST. That song had bad lyrics, but a beautiful arrangement and Kaira sounded beautiful. thus I'm happy to have stumbled upon her album! Oh and there's some interesting info over at wikipedia about her.
The album opens with 再一次擁有 (Possess Once More), a gentle ballad with a stunning piano part and sincere, beautiful vocals from Kaira. The song is soft and sorrowful- and did I mention beautiful? There is a beautiful piano part as well as subtle use of strings. The song slowly builds up with instruments, growing louder and stronger. Kaira's voice is pure and emotional- the use of dynamics perfect. A wonderful start to the album.
The next track 想不想自由 (Don't You Want Freedom?) is soft and accoustic with a darker feel to it. Kaira puts alot of attitude to her voice, giving an impressive vocal performance that adds great atmosphere to the song. The song is reminscent of a certain song, or genre that I can't remember- but it sounds familiar! Haha. That's bad to say that in a review but you'll know what I mean if you hear it. It's another beautiful and relaxing track, more upbeat and bitter than the first. Judging by the title, you can tell why Kaira sounds so bitter.
Track three 遠遠在一起 (Together Far Away) is another piano based ballad. There's fantastic use of strings, particulary cello too. The song is more hopeful than the sorrowful 再一次擁有 but is just as beautiful. The song has a much stronger arrangment too. It's laid-back though with wonderful instrumentation and Kaira sounds amazing, of course. The bridge is absolutly stunning, and the way it builds up to the bridge and the last chorus before dying away is very powerful.
歷險記 (Diary of Adventures) is the next song. A soft and laid-back but bittersweet song, with a gorgeous instrumentation- particulary the piano and strings and deep bass instrument. Kaira gives a strong vocal performance, I love it when she reaches up the higher notes and the dark rythmns of the verses and the bridge. Her voice is pretty ethereal, and gives a gentle feel to the song.
Track 5 opens with some warped instrumentation, continuing to build up to a upbeat, more pop-like tune. 十字路口 (Crossroads) is comparable to 想不想自由 with the same accoustic, particulary accoustic guitar arrangement and strong vocals filled with attitude from Kaira. There's a few backing vocals but they are placed well and don't deteriate from the song. It's another nice track. I love her adlibbing : )
We're halfway through the album with 白鴿 ( White Dove), a sad sounding ballad. The soft ostrinato at the beginning lends an ethereal feel, as do Kaira's soft and beautiful voice. The song builds up, retaining the sad and slow feel to it. Kaira's voice continues to be absolutly beautiful, filled with sincere emotion. It's a stunning song, similiar to alot of the ballads here with the piano and strings however it doesn't feel the same, nor am I bored. Instead I really feel the emotion of the song and it moves me. I think so far the album has been beautiful, the songs retain the same arrangements yet each still manages to be unique. Kaira's vocals really shine too, she has a stunning voice.
But the album isn't over yet! 如果你真愛我 (If You Really Love Me) is the next track, and though it's a ballad it is stronger, and the strings prominent right from the beginning. I really like the cello part to this, it's adds a rich sound to the song. This is another beautiful and emotional ballad, stronger and less sad than 白鴿 but with it's own beauty and emotion nonetheless.
一天天 ( Every Day) is a sweet ballad, with a nice accoustic guitar part. The song builds up the chorus, where it really shines. Kaira really sounds beautiful with the soft vibrato and the way she hits the high notes. The song sounds bittersweet and it's filled with a tender emotion. It has a lovely instrumentation and Kaira sounds so wonderful. Another stunning track! I love all the variations it goes through.
The album is nearly over with 起初只是朋友 (At First, We Were But Friends) starts quietly, dominated by Kaira's reflective vocals. The song builds up, becoming a sweet uptempo ballad with a happy atmosphere. The accoustic guitar part is really nice, as are Kaira's vocals (as always :P)
Then the last track, 思念 (Longing) a soft ballad to end the album off. Much like the first song, this one is piano based. Kaira's vocals really shine, leading the song forward and filled with so much emotion. Midway there is some beautiful strings introduced too. This is another beatiful track, and an appropriate end to the album.
This album is soft and emotional. It's a beautiful and relaxing to listen to, with soft laid back songs, more upbeat attutude filled ones and then some stunning sincere ballads. I first heard of Kaira through the one song she did for Tokyo Juliet, and was amazed by her beautiful voice. This album is a further showcase of said beautiful, absolutly stunning voice. I cannot reccomend it enough. It bugs me though because she reminds me of something or someone, the way she sings and the arrangment of the songs. I cannot place it though! Sorry (_ _) The album is beautiful though! You should really listen if you want something relaxing to chill out to.
LAS VEGAS is Onitsuka Chihiro's fourth album released on 2007.10.31 . It was her first in two years of hiatus, and her first under Universal. The album is a selection of the best of roughly 20 songs that she composed during her two year hiatus. The album has a theme of travel; which is why Las Vegas (somewhere relatively far away from Japan) was chosen for the title of the album. This title had been decided on since around about Sugar High's release to be the title of the next album in chronological order.
The album opens with the beautiful Sweet Rosemary, a slow and calming song reliant on stunning vocals from Onitsuka and wonderful instrumentation- a lovely accoustic guitar part building up as the song progresses. It's a sweet and romantic song, I think it's about love- or accepting that love is over and love is now gone. I think. It's a beautiful song nonetheless. I love the adlibbing bits to it. It's a beautiful song, a wonderful opening to the album.
The second track is Bad Trip, a darker song contrasting to Sweet Rosemary. It has a dark, almost bitter sound to it. The song is entirely in english, and despite a slight (and expected) accent, for the most part it's understandable. It's a simple sounding, but emotional song driven by Onitsuka's beautiful voice, and nice instrumentation- piano, strings and some percussion too. The piano part is certainly the highlight. It continues the beauty that Sweet Rosemary first presented.
蝋の翼 (waxen wings) follows Bad Trip. The song is quite upbeat, less calming than Sweet Rosemary and lighter than Bad Trip. The song is about the emotional high of being in love, drawing on the story of icarus as a symbol- "I’m flying
on waxen wings/ up to the sun, no matter how far, if I’m with you/ That they melted and I fell, what a great feeling/I’m not waiting for what’s next/ If I’m with you". What to say? It's another beautiful song.
Track 4 is 僕等 バラ色の日々 (our rose colored days), a beautiful almost sorrowful song. I want to post what the song represents, so here: "[..] is meant to give the image of rose petals swirling about. The Theme of the song is resignation and despair in the face of the fact that rose-colored days cannevre last--and yet, to seek those days over and over represents hope" I think for sure you can picture the PV, a girl running desperatly seeking...searching for the "rose colored days"- swirling rose petals, the sweet smell after the rain has faded etc etc- the song conveys alot of imagery. It's a beautiful song, with stunning instrumental based on piano and strings, and of course wonderful, emotional vocals from Onitsuka Chihiro. I love the ending with the "ah" bits, Onitsuka conveys her emotions of hope contrasting to despair perfectly. In short, this song is amazing and very moving. Did I mention the wonderful lyrics too?
The album changes abruptly when amphibious starts, introducing a far rockier sound. It also has alot of swearing in it, which is enough for me to be turned off. I don't mind swear words, but it automatically means I cannot listen- not with the family around. I do like the overall sound to it, it's not bad but it is out of place and the swearing.. just really offputting.
Then LAS VEGAS goes back to the piano based-ness with MAGICAL WORLD, an album version of course. A song about human warmth <3 Like alot of Onitsuka's song it's a beautiful, piano based song with wonderful and emotional vocals from Onitsuka. There's something about the song I don't particulary like, but it's still very pretty.
Track 7 is a A Horse and a Queen. I love this song, it is very relaxing and laid-back with a more upbeat sound contrasting to darker lyrics. Onitsuka sounds beautiful, and I like the instrumentation- especially the saxophone and piano parts. I wonder what she means by "I just kneel to bright ditch down" though ^_^
Next up is a new version of the B-side to 育つ雑草 (pulling weeds), Rainman. The opening is a little cheesy, over the top like a movie theme but it tones down to the familiar repeating piano part and sweet vocals from Onitsuka. I must say, there's something I like about this alot more than the original. The instrumentation is very quirky, matching the lyrics and adding something interesting to the song: I like the overall feel to it. It's an upbeat and hopeful little song- which still remains beautiful and relaxing.
After Rainman is Angelina, named after Agelina Jolie. It's another beautiful song, with wonderful piano and string instrumentation and gorgeous vocals from Onitsuka. The lyrics are beautiful, and hopeful- "I'm not dead/not yet". I love the different dynamics to the song, the way it builds up then builds down then builds up again to finally fade away, as well as the emotion Onitsuka presents. It's very beautiful and powerful song. The cello/viola part is love <3
The second to last track is BRIGHTEN US, I really do not like the relgious connations and hymn feel to it- at all. Even though Onitsuka's voice is beautiful like always, I really have no love for religious themed songs.
The album ends on the beauitiful everyhome. The song is just piano and Onitsuka, but it is incredibly powerful and very moving. Similiar to say, 僕等 バラ色の日々 is has a feeling of hopelessness and despair, of simply "going on" with hopes and dreams, that are never realised. Onitsuka said she wrote this whilst watching Forest Gump with the sound off- and I wonder what the song wants to really convey. Anyway, I love how the song builds up, how it starts quietly and climaxes for before calming down again. The lyrics are stunning, "I'm sure they've continued blaming themselves for not snapping out of their dreams" for example; and Onitsuka sounds beautiful, giving an impressive vocal performance. The piano part is also stunning, and compliments her voice perfectly. They blend together to create a beautiful and moving song- a wonderful one to end the album on.
This album took a while to grow on me, but when I did eventually fall for it I fell hard. I think it is a very beautiful album, remiscent of her older albums but also presenting a new sound in many ways. I find with the expcetion of Brighten us and Ampibious it could have been perfect. However the swearing in Amphibious is not appreciated, and the more rock sound to it sounds out of place. If 育つ雑草 wasn't placed here, then why should a track like that? Brighten us, well I don't like the religious connations to it. Otherwise the album is absolutly stunning. wonderful to put on in the background as you are chilling out. It is so beautiful, and so relaxing. I was very glad that Onitsuka Chihiro released something like this after 2 years of hiatus, proving she's still as great as she has always been.
Overall: 10/10 (Amazing, highly reccomended)
and yes, I did write far too much ; ) I really love this album you know? It moves me alot. Quite a few of these songs make me feel like I could cry. This is my second favourite album from her, or atleast it's got alot of my favourite songs from her on it. But then, I really adore Onitsuka Chihiro and she has such a powerful voice. So that's why you'll see "beautiful", "wonderful", "stunning" etc alot. :D The cover and album booklet are stunning too. I love the setting, and the cover the border and placement of words looks very nice. Lastly, Lyrics and stuff from here
I couldn't resist reviewing this. It's a great song. I first heard it as the opening of Junjou Romantica, and kinda fell for it after a few listens. The song continues to amuse me because listening to it reminds me of the opening to Junjou Romantica, which is very pink, very flowery and just throughly amusing in it's Shoujo-ness/Bl stereotype (you can tell it's playing it up for the fangirls). The B-side is also really good. So here is pigstar Kimi-hana. No idea when it was released. This band ain't well known.
Tracklisting:
1: Kimi=Hana
2: gore
3: Kimi=Hana (instrumental)
4: Gore (instrumental)
Kimi=Hana is an upbeat pop-rock song. It's fast with aggressive vocal parts and romantic lyrics. I like it. The instrumentation is really good, and the vocalist sounds really good too. His voice is beautiful, and he puts enough emotion into it. The song is pretty long, but thankfully got enough variation to keep it interesting. After a while the verse, chorus, verse, chorus, verse, chorus, chorus gets old then the bridge comes in. The guitar solo is decent and the repetetion of the vocals gives a good feeling. I really like the ending too. It's a pretty good, and fun song.
gore has a very strange name, but is a beautiful rock ballad. The instrumentation is beautiful, as is the use of strings. The guitar part is really good too. The vocalist sounds beautiful, and his voice carries alot of emotion. The way the song builds up the chorus is wonderful. I love the emotion in the song. The use of different dynamics also helps add to the emotion. It's very beautiful, emotional and powerful ballad. (I used the word beautiful alot but it's a fitting word for the song)
Overall once again I'm thankful to anime for introducing me to new, and excellent music. This single is amazing! OK, I might be tiny bit fangirling right now and maybe I'll grow bored but right now I'm in love. The vocalist (or vocalists...not sure) has a nice voice, similiar to the vocalist of LAST ALLIANCE. Kimi=Hana is a fun and upbeat pop-rock number, and gore totally surprised me by being a beautiful and heartfelt rock ballad. You should check it out! You know they really remind me of LAST ALLIANCE- and that can never be a bad thing. Hopefully because of the tie-in with Junjou they'll get more attention, and I'll be able to find more of their stuff (or later releases)
It's finally out!! I'm so happy. Released on this is Suzuki Ami's 29th single, her 14th on Avex and her second produced by that awesome dude from capsule. Then again I only like his Suzuki Ami productions, as well as perfume's secret secret. Otherwise both meg and perfume are rubbish. Suzuki Ami though really suits the genre- and she can actually sing. And she looks really hot on the single covers, somehow not sl^tty at all.
Tracklisting:
1: ONE
2: A token of love
3: ONE (instrumental)
4: A token of love (FM88 mix)
ONE kicks off with the distorted vocal part before coming in with the electronic instrumentation. Ami's voice is distorted, especially on the longer notes, but it don't sound bad. The song builds up the very catchy chorus. Again her voice is distorted but it works really well in the context of the song. For sure it meets the specification of "upbeat" and "sparkly". It's an amazing song, comparable to the awesome FREE FREE. It's got great electronic instrumentation, effects and variation. I love Suzuki Ami's voice, emotionless or distorted or just as she is. I love the repetetion of "number one" and also the meaning of the song, which is I think about "the one" and "only one in this world". It's cute. But it's also quite sexy, especially with the whispering voices and stuff.
The PV for ONE is also very sexy, with bad dance moves but cute outfits and pretty face makeup. Suzuki ami looks great and though the lights are blinding, it fits the song well.
ONE is cute and sparkly with a sexy edge. It is AWESOME.
The single takes a slight downfall with A token of love as the B-side. It's still great, but it's very very long. Like ONE it's all very electronic, and it's great with lots of varioations and effects. This one has a much more spacey feel though. Suzuki ami comes in with her "oh" and she sounds really good. It's all very techy and quite nice. She sounds a bit robotic in the verse though- like she's trying to be cute but the distortion means she sounds like some sort of alien. The pre chorus continues to be irritatiing, before the plain and dragged out chorus. The you and me is like some creepy alien coming after a human... "hehehe. You and me~~~~~"
Can you imagine that? XD sorry... bad joke...
There are good parts of the song, and they are very good, sprinkled with some bad parts of the song, and they are pretty irritating. It's all very cutesy (more creepy) and techy. Not bad but it may have to grow on me.
Overall? ONE is so awesome, and A token of love despite my taking the mick out of it is also quite good. I do think that Yasutaka brings out the best in Suzuki Ami, and I'm glad that there's also gonna be a full album of this standard. It's not a bad single, on the contrary it's pretty damn good. ONE is up there with my favourite electronic songs. A token of love will continue to make me giggle, but will probably still linger on my playlist.
LOVEppears (love appears) is Hamasaki Ayumi's second full length album on avex, released way back on 1999.11.10. The album has a very trance (dance music) feel to it, and though Ayu's vocals are far from matured- they sound alot more polished than the often squeaky-ness of song for xx. Here is some information taken from wiki.ppn: The album is a double album where the first disc is a collection of
new tracks and the second disc is a mini-compilation from Ayumi's
other releases. The album reached #1 on the Oricon
charts and stayed on the charts for a total of sixty-four weeks,
selling a total of 2,562,130 copies. The album is the #38 best selling
album in Japan. The singles off the album all came out to be quite successful. The album's single "LOVE ~Destiny~" was her first #1 single, and "Boys & Girls" was her first single to sell over a million copies. The single "A" featured four a-side tracks and the single holds the record for the longest Japanese CD single. The tracks "Fly high" and "kanariya" were re-released a few months later as singles. kanariya is the first re-cut single in Oricon history to hold the top position.
"Just having met you, just having loved you,
having shared my thoughts with you,
from now until forever... thank you."
Second to last is Who... a very pretty little ballad. It has a nice piano part but still relies alot on twinkling synth and a distorted guitar bit. Ayu sounds beautiful in the ad-libbing, giving it a very light feel. The way her voice is distorted to sound slightly echoey backs the ethereal feel. Oh and the lyrics are extremly romantic. It's a wonderful little ballad to "finish" the album off. Very laid back and ethereal sounding. Nothing special but packed with emotion, and pleasant to listen to. It also fits nicely from Love ~refrain~ - but Ayu's albums always flow nicely.
lyrics source: Divine Ayu Cover source: Japanese Princess Information: wiki.ppn
This is a digital single from Gummy, released on 2008.06.26. It's a cover of an old song from 1969. Judging by the cover it's being used for that upcoming film about the women who becomes a sexy singer during wartime in order to find her husband. Technically, this review is me cheating since it's only one song but nvm.
Nimeun meon goseh (in a distant place) is a beautiful meloncholic ballad. It starts quietly with only gummy then introduces a repetetetive piano part. It's very beautiful and haunting- and Gummy's voice suits it totally, as well as the amount of emotion she puts into it. Slowly the song builds up, getting louder and instroducing more instruments. There's a wonderful use of piano and string, alongside modern isntruments (theres a good guitar solo somewhere). The chorus is repetetetive but full of emotion and beautifully sung, with lots ad libbing. Gummy reaches the high notes perfectly. It's a beautiful song that builds up then fades away- packed with lots of emotion, fantastic instrumentals and amazing singing from Gummy.
This is a beautiful beautiful song. I cannot copare to the original, but I'd ay that Gummy did it justice. I've had it on repeat for a little while now- and it's not yet gotten old.
FINALLY got hold of this single!!! Only the regular edition though :( Gonna review it straight away, it will probably be awesome. haha. I agree with Cliff that the 4 versions is riduculous though, and very off-putting. As someone who is still desperatly trying to save enough money to buy his albums and a few favourite singles: having to decide which 4 to buy of this single is annoying. I probably won't buy any- as I said, I'm more a fan of getting albums and only singles if they have a B-side unavailable on a album that is really good.
Anyway, this is Kiyoharu's 15th single released on 2008.05.14 with a total of 4 versions. The limited editions had a collection of the main A-side, Samidare, with tracks Bohemian, Shiro to Kuro, Bara Shoku no Yume. Oh and limited edition C instead of having Samidare, has a Samidare accoustic available. All the limited editions came with a DVD, with a PV and a "making of" movie of some sort. Only the regular edition doesn't come with a DVD (of course- how else to make money for yourself while leaving the fans desperatly poor? POO. All the limited edtions- why do you tempt me so?!)
Also out of the covers, the only one I really like is Type A. Type C is OK but blurred, an I don't particulary like the effects used on Type B and regular.
Tracklist (regular edition only!!)
1: Samidare
2: EMBRACE
Samidare is one of Kiyoharu's more upbeat songs, with funky guitar parts and a little bit of synth. Kiyoharu sounds great, of course, and the song is quite relaxing to put on and listen too.
EMBRACE is a very smooth song filled with alot of synth and electronic effects. It's really sexy through the verses, though I'm not a fan of the huge electronic/dial tone thing in the middle- kinda kills my speakers. Also Kiyoharu's voice sounds slighlty smothered by the instrumentation. The "I want to embrace you" is very sexy though, Kiyoharu's vocals are still top-notch and the song also has a nice repetetive little ostinato in the background, as well as a great guitar part.
Overall- I love this man. There are very few songs of his I don't like, or haven't listened to (Still working on the B-sides of his singles admittedly). If I ignore the whole "lets make as much money from my dedicated fans" scheme behind it all- then this is a great single. Kiyoharu always manages to put out great music which is beautiful and relaxing. Often, I'm shocked by his talent. If I have the chance to get hold of the other version, i will review them too. Excellent, and long awaited, releese from Kiyoharu.
Jinkaku radio is a band I had never heard of before, and I really regret that. I downloaded a song of their, an accoustic version of Buranko and was immediatly captured by the simple but emotive composition and the tone of the singers voice. The singer doesn't have the strongest sounding voice, but surpisingly can hold notes a long time and manages to convey a lot of emotion. Naturally, after that one song I hunted out the original. I found it on the B-side of their single, Akui. I'm unsure as to waht single number this is, though I know it was released on 04.12.2005.
Tracklist:
1: Akui (malice)
2: Buranko (swing)
Akui is just WOW. It starts with a calming guitar and synth string part which makes you think that it will be some sort of ballad: before introducing the rest of the instruments making for a far more heavier and darker sound. Things quiet down for the verses, with a soft piano part and the vocals sounding blunt- simply conveying the lyrics building up the emotion to the chorus where the singer just lets go. His voice sounds strained, which adds to a feeling of despair and pain instead of being annoying. The chorus is followed by a long and excellent guitar part before again toning down to the piano and the vocals. The highlight being the end where the main lines like "yami no ame" is sung out and the vocalist sustains the notes over a beauitful guitar part. The song then ends much like it began, piano and string and guitar in a calming motif, totally contrasting to the rest of the song. Overall It's a dark song filled with emotions particulary despair, the lyrics seemingly depciting some sort of breakdown (perhaps)- "The dull pain keeps coming/Unable to take it, I break".
Buranko is totaly opposite of Akui. Actually, it's a strange beast. A fanastastic beautiful beast but strange. The lyrics are cryptic, the feelings it makes you feel and the atmposhpere of the song is mixed- it in part is a song filled with hopelessness, despair and yet by the end you are feeling hopeful and relaxed. It stars with what sounds like a wooden xylophone over a heavy bass drum. The xylophone drops out and is replaced by a repeating piano part and the vocalist comes in, singing softly conveying a strange feeling. The chorus is the highlight, beautiful and sad- yet at the same time hopeful. The vocalist has a beautiful tone to his voice, and it's lovely the way he floats up to the really high notes in the chorus, The repeating rythms are like the gentle rythmn onf the swing going back and forth, During the bridge a childish element comes into the song, the simple melodies and the repeation like a nursery ryhme. This is backed up by the ending, where the xylophone comes back in and you can hear children singing. A strange beast, but beautiful and emotional: simply amazing. No to mention, totally unlike anything I've heard before.
Overall, This is a fanstastic single from a brilliant and clearly talented band. They tend to remind me alot of Muse actually. I've not heard alot of Muse but what my sister plays, but the alternate element to Jinkaku's radios music, the prolonged notes and the sense of urgency are all there: especially in Akui. Overall a fantastic and unique single, which is strangely catchy and great to put on repeat for a day or so (note: I've been playing this atleast 5 times a day for the past three days). Furthermore, this is a good intro single to their music and just how awesome this band is. Highly reccomended!
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J-rock music reviews Updated: Oct 19, 2009
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